Will the Boston Celtics continue prioritize versatility and scoring in the NBA Draft?
ESPN’s Jonathan Givony predicted Tuesday in his latest 2021 NBA mock draft the Celtics will select Pepperdine’s Kessler Edwards in the first round and South Dakota State’s Baylor Scheierman in the second round. Boston still has 14 games remaining in the regular season, so it might not land the 22nd and 52nd overall picks. Nevertheless, Givony links the Celtics to the aforementioned prospects.
Edwards was a starter at power forward and small forward for almost the entirety of his three-year Pepperdine career. He averaged 17.2 points on 49 percent shooting and 6.8 rebounds per game in 2020-211, earning the second of his two All-WCC selections.
Scheierman averaged 15.4 points, 9.2 rebounds and four assists in 2020-21, his sophomore season and first as a starter at South Dakota State. He was a 49.8 percent field-goal shooter and hit 43.8 percent of his 3-point attempts.
Givony and Mike Schmitz previously projected the Celtics to select Auburn point guard Sharife Cooper with the 19th overall pick in this year’s draft. Boston has won six of the seven games it has played since April 8, when Givony and Shimtz compiled their previous NBA mock draft, and the winning run has worsened the Celtics’ projected draft position by three spots. Boston will play 14 more regular season games, and its draft position might change further.
The NBA will set the draft order June 22 following the 2021 NBA Draft Lottery. The 2021 NBA Draft will take place June 29.
For now, Celtics fans can familiarize themselves with Cooper and compare him to other players mock drafters predict Boston will draft.
